El Paso Steps Up to Plate

With real-estate values on the upswing, the age-old battle between development and preservation is heating up again in some cities. In El Paso, Texas, development has won the latest skirmish.

The former El Paso City Hall was demolished in seconds Sunday to pave the way for a new $50 million minor league baseball stadium. The implosion was the first step in the city's controversial bid to revitalize downtown in order to better compete for tourists and jobs.

ENLARGE

The planned $50 million baseball stadium in El Paso, Texas, shown in a rendering.
Populous

Few argue that the city lost an architectural gem. The 10-story glass and concrete building was built in the 1970s and its rectangular shape resembled a toaster. Still, some area residents say they will miss the centralized access it offered to city services. Its demise also is a reminder that the real-estate recovery is pressuring some cities to weigh the value of older buildings that are often prime candidates for demolition and aren't protected by landmark status.

"As property values rise…properties that have been allowed to deteriorate from neglect often become targets for demolition,"
William Cook,
associate general counsel for the National Trust for Historic Preservation in Washington, wrote in an email.

The development pressure comes as the construction industry, which includes demolition companies, shows signs of life. The construction sector saw employment climb for the 10th consecutive month in March, bringing the total number of jobs to over 5.8 million, the highest since September 2009.

Michael Taylor,
executive director of the National Demolition Association, said demolition contractors are among the first trades to see more work. "They aren't bragging about it, but everybody's pretty busy," he said.

Cities large and small are wrestling with preservation issues. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants to rezone the area around Grand Central Terminal to allow soaring skyscrapers, where preservationists fear for the fate of early-1900s buildings.

In Chicago, Northwestern University is demolishing the Bertrand Goldberg-designed Prentice Women's Hospital over the objections some opponents. The university wants to build a new medical research facility on the site near Michigan Avenue.

Plans to redevelop El Paso's downtown were adopted in 2006 but stalled amid the recession, said
Joyce Wilson,
El Paso's city manager. The city of nearly 700,000 sits on the U.S.-Mexico border and bills itself as the Boot Capital of the World. It is home to independent crude-oil refiner
Western Refining
Co.
and to Fort Bliss and has a rich history.

But Ms. Wilson said the city's downtown needs the stadium and more attractions if it is going to compete with other southwestern cities like Albuquerque, N.M., and Tucson, Ariz. "It's got a very international flavor to it, but it hasn't kept up in terms of renewal and redevelopment like other cities around the country," said Ms. Wilson.

Last year, the city voters approved bonds to support the building of the new stadium, as well as a larger plan for a new downtown arena, a children's museum and a park. Ms. Wilson said the city opted to build the stadium on the site of the existing city hall because it was centrally located. Also, the city already owns the property, so it can quickly deliver the stadium in time for the Tucson Triple-A Padres to relocate and begin playing there next spring, she said. El Paso is relocating its city offices into several existing buildings nearby.

The designers of the ballpark have sought to include elements of the city's history in its plan.
David Bower,
principal of Populous, a Kansas City, Mo., architecture firm that designed the ballpark, said the stadium will be made out of red brick to match the city's train depot and will include murals depicting El Paso history.

Some residents who didn't formally oppose the demolition said they are concerned that the city's penchant for building new rather than renovating may be shortsighted. "The first thing people think of when they think of El Paso is the Old West," said
Bernie Sargent,
chairman of the El Paso County Historical Commission. "But we keep bouncing around trying to rebrand ourselves."

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